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Pleasure Island - all six clubs closing.
- Thread starter TSR6
- Start date
KINGBOBOFTHENORTH
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2006
Disney to close Pleasure Island's six nightclubs
Scott Powers | Sentinel Staff Writer
7:43 PM EDT, June 27, 2008
The six nightclubs at Pleasure Island will soon shut down, as Walt Disney World redevelops the adult-focused district at Downtown Disney.
BET SoundStage Club, Mannequins Dance Palace, 8Trax and three other nightclubs that have for years catered largely to young, single adults -- rather than to Disney's bread-and-butter family market -- will close after Sept. 27. Over the next couple of years Disney will reopen the Pleasure Island area with a broader mix of restaurants and shops.
Though Pleasure Island's possible demise has been the subject of rumors for awhile, the announcement surprised many in the Orlando nightclub business. Pleasure Island, now 19 years old, may have seemed an odd venture for Disney but it appeared to thrive -- so much so that some in the industry have blamed it for accelerating the decline of the nightlife district in Downtown Orlando during the 1990s.
In announcing what they called "a bold new vision" for all of Downtown Disney on Friday, Disney officials framed the Pleasure Island nightclub closures as a response to their customers, who say they want more broad-based dining and retail opportunities throughout the 120-acre district.
Scott Powers | Sentinel Staff Writer
7:43 PM EDT, June 27, 2008
The six nightclubs at Pleasure Island will soon shut down, as Walt Disney World redevelops the adult-focused district at Downtown Disney.
BET SoundStage Club, Mannequins Dance Palace, 8Trax and three other nightclubs that have for years catered largely to young, single adults -- rather than to Disney's bread-and-butter family market -- will close after Sept. 27. Over the next couple of years Disney will reopen the Pleasure Island area with a broader mix of restaurants and shops.
Though Pleasure Island's possible demise has been the subject of rumors for awhile, the announcement surprised many in the Orlando nightclub business. Pleasure Island, now 19 years old, may have seemed an odd venture for Disney but it appeared to thrive -- so much so that some in the industry have blamed it for accelerating the decline of the nightlife district in Downtown Orlando during the 1990s.
In announcing what they called "a bold new vision" for all of Downtown Disney on Friday, Disney officials framed the Pleasure Island nightclub closures as a response to their customers, who say they want more broad-based dining and retail opportunities throughout the 120-acre district.
CanadianGuy
<font color=green><br><br><font color=blue>Me and
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2006
Well.. that's too bad.
rebecca06261
DIS Pirate Wench
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2007
Are we really suprised??? 
CanadianGuy
<font color=green><br><br><font color=blue>Me and
- Joined
- Apr 24, 2006
I'm surprised with the totality of the announcement.. yes.
Numerous rumors had indicated that some of the bars might survive in another form. That doesn't appear to be the case.
Numerous rumors had indicated that some of the bars might survive in another form. That doesn't appear to be the case.
KINGBOBOFTHENORTH
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2006
I've got a friend out at PI tonight to see what he can find out and I'll be out there tomorrow night. Will update here if there is anything new.
BobK/Orlando
BobK/Orlando
I'm not surprised, just disappointed. Shops and restaurants don't really excite me since I'm a local and those places don't really change often enough. I'll definitely miss having it around. In addition to that, AC and CW are such uniquely decorated buildings it's upsetting to know they will be gutted.
However, I am pretty shocked that they seem to be closing it all at once, I was expecting a slow transition. Since PI is pretty much in the middle of everything that's going to be a big eyesore and/or a giant road block.
However, I am pretty shocked that they seem to be closing it all at once, I was expecting a slow transition. Since PI is pretty much in the middle of everything that's going to be a big eyesore and/or a giant road block.
AdventurerKat
<font color=FF99FF>Cries in her Jello shots<br><fo
- Joined
- Nov 7, 2001
This saddens me so much. I've been going to the AC for 14 years. Many times, it was the only reason I was even going to DisneyWorld. To take away such a unique experience to fill it with just another restaurant or store is so wrong.
Dznefreek
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 13, 2000
The party's over at Pleasure Island: Disney to shut down 6 nightclubs
Scott Powers | Sentinel Staff Writer June 28, 2008
Walt Disney World is shutting down the six nightclubs at Pleasure Island to make its party district at Downtown Disney more family friendly.
BET SoundStage Club, Mannequins Dance Palace, 8Trax and three other clubs that have for years catered largely to young, single adults -- rather than to Disney's bread-and-butter family market -- will close after Sept. 27.
During the next couple of years, Disney will reopen the Pleasure Island venues with a broader mix of restaurants and shops.
Pleasure Island's change has been the subject of rumors for a while. Now 19 years old, it may have seemed an odd venture for Disney, but it appeared to thrive -- so much so that some in the industry have blamed it for accelerating the decline of the nightlife district in downtown Orlando during the 1990s.
In announcing what they called "a bold new vision" for all of Downtown Disney on Friday, Disney officials framed the Pleasure Island nightclub closures as a response to customers who say they want more broad-based dining and retail opportunities throughout the 120-acre district.
"Right now we believe we've got a shortage of dining capacity and shopping capacity, so we'll be adding to those areas, and we'll be looking at some specialized entertainment options also," said Downtown Disney Vice President Kevin Lansberry.
Dining, shopping, more
Pleasure Island opened in 1989, designed to look like a revitalized back-alley warehouse district. Today it is the middle section of Disney World's dining, shopping and entertainment district. Though the two flanking areas, Marketplace and the West Side, also have nightclubs, they operate as parts of restaurants, appealing to broader, family-friendly crowds. Until recently, Pleasure Island has been mostly about music, dancing, drinking and partying -- creating an awkward link between Marketplace and West Side.
"The rumor has been there that they would transform Pleasure Island into something else, but us regulars always thought at least Mannequins and 8Trax would stay alive," said Jorge Vazquez, 41, an accountant who said he goes to Pleasure Island two or three times a month.
Pleasure Island and its counterpart at Universal Orlando, CityWalk, which opened in 1999, both offer coordinated clusters of high-quality, highly themed nightclubs with lots of free parking and security. They offered two carefully conceived alternatives to downtown Orlando's once-vibrant counterpart, Church Street Station.
Orlando lawyer Mark NeJame, majority investor in the downtown nightclub Tabu as well as an investor in other nightclubs, said he is surprised at Disney's announcement but that it could be good news for downtown Orlando.
"It's a real opportunity for downtown to continue its revitalization," NeJame said. "When Pleasure Island first opened, it devastated a lot of the local entrepreneurs and operators."
Some businesses remain
Though the six nightclubs will close, the other businesses on Pleasure Island -- a couple of restaurants, a cigar bar and a couple of clothing shops -- will remain open. They already offer the broad appeal that Lansberry said Disney's patrons want. He did not offer specifics about what might replace the clubs but said Disney was looking worldwide for restaurant and shopping concepts.
"Some of the offerings might feel like a nightclub, but they won't feel like high-energy clubs like we have today in all likelihood," Lansberry said. "Truthfully, our guests have really gotten out of that in the last couple of years. They want things that are a lot more geared toward family entertainment."
Disney World also is sprucing up Downtown Disney's other two areas, adding restaurants, expanding and updating a band shell, refurbishing and updating other businesses, and bringing in a giant tethered-balloon attraction that visitors will be able to ride in, going up more than 300 feet above Village Lake.
Bob Snow, who developed Church Street Station in the 1970s and has re-entered the picture this year by reopening one of that district's centerpiece nightclubs, the Cheyenne Saloon, said he never blamed Pleasure Island for Church Street's decline. But he, too, said he hopes Pleasure Island's nightclub closures would create more opportunities in downtown Orlando.
Snow said he always was amazed that Disney got into the nightclub-district business in the first place.
"It really surprised me that they're just going to throw in the towel," he said. Then he added: "They got out of their knitting. They got out of their main line, what they do so well."
Scott Powers can be reached at spowers@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5441.
Scott Powers | Sentinel Staff Writer June 28, 2008
Walt Disney World is shutting down the six nightclubs at Pleasure Island to make its party district at Downtown Disney more family friendly.
BET SoundStage Club, Mannequins Dance Palace, 8Trax and three other clubs that have for years catered largely to young, single adults -- rather than to Disney's bread-and-butter family market -- will close after Sept. 27.
During the next couple of years, Disney will reopen the Pleasure Island venues with a broader mix of restaurants and shops.
Pleasure Island's change has been the subject of rumors for a while. Now 19 years old, it may have seemed an odd venture for Disney, but it appeared to thrive -- so much so that some in the industry have blamed it for accelerating the decline of the nightlife district in downtown Orlando during the 1990s.
In announcing what they called "a bold new vision" for all of Downtown Disney on Friday, Disney officials framed the Pleasure Island nightclub closures as a response to customers who say they want more broad-based dining and retail opportunities throughout the 120-acre district.
"Right now we believe we've got a shortage of dining capacity and shopping capacity, so we'll be adding to those areas, and we'll be looking at some specialized entertainment options also," said Downtown Disney Vice President Kevin Lansberry.
Dining, shopping, more
Pleasure Island opened in 1989, designed to look like a revitalized back-alley warehouse district. Today it is the middle section of Disney World's dining, shopping and entertainment district. Though the two flanking areas, Marketplace and the West Side, also have nightclubs, they operate as parts of restaurants, appealing to broader, family-friendly crowds. Until recently, Pleasure Island has been mostly about music, dancing, drinking and partying -- creating an awkward link between Marketplace and West Side.
"The rumor has been there that they would transform Pleasure Island into something else, but us regulars always thought at least Mannequins and 8Trax would stay alive," said Jorge Vazquez, 41, an accountant who said he goes to Pleasure Island two or three times a month.
Pleasure Island and its counterpart at Universal Orlando, CityWalk, which opened in 1999, both offer coordinated clusters of high-quality, highly themed nightclubs with lots of free parking and security. They offered two carefully conceived alternatives to downtown Orlando's once-vibrant counterpart, Church Street Station.
Orlando lawyer Mark NeJame, majority investor in the downtown nightclub Tabu as well as an investor in other nightclubs, said he is surprised at Disney's announcement but that it could be good news for downtown Orlando.
"It's a real opportunity for downtown to continue its revitalization," NeJame said. "When Pleasure Island first opened, it devastated a lot of the local entrepreneurs and operators."
Some businesses remain
Though the six nightclubs will close, the other businesses on Pleasure Island -- a couple of restaurants, a cigar bar and a couple of clothing shops -- will remain open. They already offer the broad appeal that Lansberry said Disney's patrons want. He did not offer specifics about what might replace the clubs but said Disney was looking worldwide for restaurant and shopping concepts.
"Some of the offerings might feel like a nightclub, but they won't feel like high-energy clubs like we have today in all likelihood," Lansberry said. "Truthfully, our guests have really gotten out of that in the last couple of years. They want things that are a lot more geared toward family entertainment."
Disney World also is sprucing up Downtown Disney's other two areas, adding restaurants, expanding and updating a band shell, refurbishing and updating other businesses, and bringing in a giant tethered-balloon attraction that visitors will be able to ride in, going up more than 300 feet above Village Lake.
Bob Snow, who developed Church Street Station in the 1970s and has re-entered the picture this year by reopening one of that district's centerpiece nightclubs, the Cheyenne Saloon, said he never blamed Pleasure Island for Church Street's decline. But he, too, said he hopes Pleasure Island's nightclub closures would create more opportunities in downtown Orlando.
Snow said he always was amazed that Disney got into the nightclub-district business in the first place.
"It really surprised me that they're just going to throw in the towel," he said. Then he added: "They got out of their knitting. They got out of their main line, what they do so well."
Scott Powers can be reached at spowers@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5441.
disrailfan
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 24, 2001
I am bummed as well. DD wanted so much to go with me to the AC next summer since she will be 18 by then. Oh well guess that will never happen.
kimmikayb
You're never too old to be young
- Joined
- Jan 2, 2006
How were the CM's taking it? I know, silly question.
Is there any hope AC will remain alive at another location? Or with all the new shops?
welovewdw
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2005
A few references during the acts in the library were the only thing - I think most of them do alot of other stuff at Disney, too (at least I've seen a few of them elsewhere)
There were rumors floating that the AC might be relocated, as well as several people starting petitions & working to get online friends writing to Disney to try to persuade them to relocate AC - which I think is worth a shot.
I'm hoping there's enough of an outcry that Disney change their mind or decides to relocate AC somewhere else - to me, it's very Disney, great story and theming, extremely talented cast - it really would be a shame to lose it.
kimmikayb
You're never too old to be young
- Joined
- Jan 2, 2006
MJMcBride
Barely lost is barely found
- Joined
- Jan 10, 2006
http://www.mouseextra.com/2008/06/28/its-official-pleasure-island-is-a-goner/#respond
There I wrote about it
mmiller711
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2001
I want to know who filled out the survey and said "hey, I can't find enough places to buy Disney souvenirs here. Could we close down the AC and add another store??"
I love the AC and it is really a Disney place to go! I know late at night the jokes may not be for the entire family but it is so fun! I hope they save it in some form somewhere!
I love the AC and it is really a Disney place to go! I know late at night the jokes may not be for the entire family but it is so fun! I hope they save it in some form somewhere!
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